Just curious...what's the temperature like in everyone's stores? We are about to have a humid week here in the midwest and it's going to be about 95 degrees inside our store. They say the air is working fine. It's been like this for years and years. Anyone else?
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My sympathy... Our AC broke last summer and for some days it was a stagnant 98 degrees on the second floor at its worst WITH temporary floor units running. (Fortunately my manager had the two of us scheduled to work that floor come help out downstairs instead. Not that it was much better in the upper 80s.)
So far this year it is okay (except for the one half-break down a few weeks ago). Can be a little warm, but in most cases it's reasonably cool enough. Though after last summer I dread going in there and finding it hot.
That is not true. They do provide air conditioning for factory workers BUT the machines make it hard to keep it at a comfortable climate. That is why fast food places feel so cold as the kitchen equipment competes with the AC.
@edq- I've been with the company almost 20 years..Always been unbearably hot in the summer and kept way too cold in winter. It has nothing to do with customers.
AC is for the comfort of the customers. Factory workers and outdoor laborers don't get AC. Since there's no customers, there's no need for AC.
Course the higher ups dont care for the people that go to work in the morning its freaking out. Its super hot and its very annoying. I hate sometimes going early in the morning because they don't crank the A/C up until store opens (which we open at 11:00 a.m.). Cheap asses don't care about their workers just the $$$
In our store the apparel section is the worst. Customers complain about it being too hot to peel their clothes off in the fitting rooms, which feel like little saunas. And when they do try on? The MCAs have to put away all those sweaty clothes. So gross.
My store has the same issue. It's terrible the customers leave without buying anything.
I worked in a Kmart pharmacy (until it closed). It is illegal for prescription drugs to be stored above 78 degrees. Our pharmacy had separate A/C control, but the A/C kept breaking trying to keep up with how hot the rest of the store was. We could run the air on max and it would still barely stay at 78 degrees or less. I brought it to management attention that the over the counter drugs outside the pharmacy are also supposed to be stored at temps under 78 degrees....of course no one cared. Every time our air conditioner broke, I had to threaten to contact the board of pharmacy about the drug temps in order for them to get it fixed.
What is being described as "Fanhouses " are what as known as "Swamp Coolers". Alot of older Sears stores have them and they work just as described. If the dampers aren't opened the store turns into an absolute oven. I had a customer go into heat stroke in our store. I had to call 911.
Exactly why everyone should shop at Walmart. Sears and Kmart s---!
When vents open and shut it's like a big thunder clap. Confuses the customers. They think a storm is here and it's bright sunshine outside.
Store "Fanhouses" are equipped with outside air dampers. If they are stuck or set to "open" and the fans come on- the early morning air will be circulated into the store, and the early risers will be cool.
If the setting on the dampers isn't changed, even if the a/c does come on, it will be the equivalent of turning on your house a/c, and leaving all the windows and doors open.
Most of the stuff is probably either inoperable due to lack of maintenance or operator error.
Our store is the same, except for the pharmacy and offices in the back.
But so ironic they could have it nice and cool for REGIS for inventory real early in the morning... next day you sweat just doing tasks because there is t even air circulating..
Been like this for awhile. Just Tiring to sweat while you do anything
The air conditioning system starts reving up at 9:50 and it seems like it's just blowing hot air around
Truly sad
Part of the shift to the QMT program years ago was to take the control of heat and air settings away from the in store maintenance crew and give it to management. Most of the larger stores were designed to have an in house crew, simply by the nature of the complexity of the systems installed.
What they didn't realize is it actually took real skill to keep things running. Defining the task as simply
flipping switches on and off ended up costing the company big money in equipment failure and lost sales due to an uncomfortable shopping environment.
Unfortunately , the company was focused on payroll and only payroll when it came to such matters. Although they tried to contract it out, most outside companies took on the task as "time and materials" only, rather than a blank contract. Very costly when things needed fixed. Like for a company visit.
Assigning a lower skilled PMT or FSA to do tasks led to two outcomes. Either things got
done if the individual had some skill,or it didn't . Anyone with any skill usually moved on to a real maintenance job, that paid a living wage.
You want cheap? You got cheap.
Kinda nice to know it isn't just my store, I guess. One day last week it was 91 outside. We brought a portable thermostat in to see what the inside temp really was. (The QMT guys keep telling us it's set at 75 and that's what the temp is.) It was 98 degrees in our store. Horrible. They don't care if we complain. They don't care if customers complain. It's insane.
It's been like that for the last 5 year or more
We have the same problem in our MI sears store, members complaining about it every day ... not to mention the employees cant put stock away without dripping sweat